


The call of the sea

by princessofthieves



Series: In the World Below [2]
Category: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-31
Updated: 2020-02-26
Packaged: 2021-02-25 11:27:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22495336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princessofthieves/pseuds/princessofthieves
Summary: Nayru's Flame was difficult to get but what's even harder is leaving the Ocean behind.
Relationships: Groose/Link (Legend of Zelda), if you squint super hard. in any case WAY pre-relationship, otherwise friendfic in the making
Series: In the World Below [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1618357
Comments: 11
Kudos: 59





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've been replaying Skyward Sword and the Sandship part always makes me... feel. And I never really understood why the ship is 'dormant' by default once you get Nayru's flame but in the ending it's somehow 'awake'. A little fic to cover how *that* happened. (You are legit unable to leave the ship if you don't turn off the crystal, so...).
> 
> I don't usually write Skyward Sword stuff so my apologies if it's not the best representation, I'm open to any kind of criticism. It will be a somehow short story, only three chapters planned, but I may add more to the whole 'collection'

While getting Farore’s flame had been physically exhausting to the point he collapsed with a fever after getting it, Nayru’s flame had been exhausting in a very different way. Not only the trial in the silent realm had been brutal compared to the first one but… he couldn’t really wrap his head around the time stones.

He always had some doubts about how much monsters were aware of their… situation. Even in battle they never stepped out of the timestone circles, pushing them out or hitting from a safe distance usually made things easier but… did they know they were dead?

He didn’t question himself as he pushed forward, he had to save Zelda and that was his only priority, but then he met Skipper. And he saw the sea. The water under the boat was one of the most beautiful things he had ever seen, the… water-grass things were a joy to the eyes, everything under them was pulsating with life- just to turn into sand as soon as they left that little time bubble.

All that beauty, all those mysterious and colorful water creatures… when he raised his gaze and fully realized how much had been lost he felt his eyes water for the first time in years.

He honestly thought he’d be able to at least bring back the ship for Skipper and his crew, with that huge stone on the top of the main mast they at least had a chance to sail in their little sea once more, right? Yes, they couldn’t leave it but they were programmed to stay anyway so it was a win win solution.

But no, after almost losing his life against that tentacle haired abomination, after finally hearing from Skipper that the ship had been mostly repaired… he found out it was dormant. Something -or someone- hit the stone and the ship was back to its ruined state, all crew members were once more covered in rust and inactive.

He tried so hard to activate the stone, but any effort resulted in… nothing. If he shoot from the deck then the timeshift stone would also activate the ships’s defenses making it impossible for him to leave it, from Skipper’s boat on the other hand… he just couldn’t reach. His arrows would fall just a bit too short, the beetle didn’t help either, and in the end it was just him, sitting on the boat with an empty quiver a broken heart.

Why did it even matter so much? He had one job, the more he proceeded with his quest the more he felt like he had been made to serve Zelda and protect her, yet this was frustrating him so much. 

And then, as he was trying to rest and accept the overwhelming sense of defeat, the captain uttered the worst words Link ever expected to hear from him.

“It’s okay, they hit it by mistake. I guess I put my hopes too high up.” The human froze, staring at the ancient robot with wide eyes. “The longer you stay inside a stone’s influence, the more you are… aware of what it means.”

That admission had so many pieces finally fall together: the robot would always refuse to move away from the boat, no matter what, and he only boarded the ship when its timestone had been activated as well. So… he knew. And probably everyone else also knew… or at least had a feeling about it.

Not a single other word was exchanged as they retired, Link didn’t even dare to look in his direction as he moved to the statue to fly back to the Sky.

\- - -

Link didn’t even know why he returned to the sealed grounds, the Old Woman wasn’t someone who allowed small chats and she was, like Fi, always reminding him how much he needed to hurry to fulfill his destiny and that rest was unnecessary but… he needed a break.

The second Flame had been acquired, he was about to face for the third time that hell the Silent Realm could be and… he needed to get his mind off the Robots in the Sandship. Hell, they were just machines! With a personality. And feelings… fuck.

He wished he had at least someone to talk with in Skyloft but most people were busy with their lives and he wasn’t exactly allowed to share with them what was really going on below the sea of clouds so even opening up with Fledge, one of his older friends, was a terrible idea.

That left… his former bully turned almost friend? Not that he wanted to share an of his issues with him, there wasn’t enough trust there, but at least with his constant blabbering Groose had a chance to silence the voices in Link’s head. He probably just had to pretend for a moment to care about that Groosenator thing and the redhead was going to talk for hours.

He shook his head, silencing Fi who was, again, insisting that considering his optimal physical conditions his priority was reaching the Isle of Songs and reaching the last trial.

Now he just needed a good excuse to keep his visit to Granny short and… oh.

There was no need since as soon as he landed by the statue his eyes were greeted by an impressive… construction near it. Countless planks of wood and pieces of metal had been put together in a weird structure of sort and for a moment his brain went blank trying to process what he was seeing.

Where in the name of the goddess did all that stuff even come from? Link gaped, stepping on the wood and walking toward the temple, noticing how the whole thing embraced the whole where the monster was imprisoned. Did… did Groose really make it all by himself?

Apparently, yes. The man was there, hunched down and busy hitting one of the planks with a makeshift hammer to wedge it in between other two. A few steps closer and he stopped, blinking, realizing his hair were also down and completely messy. Right, he had no supplies with him when he jumped down. Oh, well, he still seemed to be able to survive, after all the Old Lady fed him and all, right? Link didn’t really have time to worry about him, this little break already felt like something he wasn’t supposed to take.

Fuck it.

He put two fingers in his mouth and whistled, loudly, to get the other’s attention.

\- - -

He was right, offered a chance to talk Groose wasn’t going to stop. Link’s hands weren’t raised once during the long, self celebratory, monologue of the other man and they just sat there for an hour drinking water with slices of a strange, yellow fruit in it. Lemon? In any case, it tasted good, how long had it been since he drank from anything more than cut cacti, puddles or warm water he carried for way too many hours.

Also, sea water tasted terribly, he discovered that the hard way.

Still, despite the constant talks -Link lost tracks as soon as he started explaining how granny shown him how to make soap out of scratches- his mind kept wandering back to the desert. Link frowned, this had been, in fact, a waste of time.

What was he even thinking? Yes, perhaps when he was sick listening to that kind of messed up talks was somehow reassuring but it was only because he could barely understand what was being said anyway. 

Link was still mid frown when he felt Groose’s finger against his shoulder.

“So, uhm… were you listening? Or was that deep frown your reply?”

Oh, great, he totally missed whatever the other tried to ask him. Link swallowed the remaining content of his glass in a single, large gulp and placed it down to be able to sign properly.

[ _ Sorry, I have a few things in my mind. What were you saying _ ?]

“Aw, man, it was already hard enough asking that the first time…” Wait, was that… embarrassment? “Link? Did… does anyone miss me?”

Oh. Oh, how he regretted visiting right now, he wanted mindless talks as distraction, not… whatever that was. His fingers twitched midair as he tried to remember if anyone even mentioned Groose since he left Skyloft. Uh… uhh…

[ _ C a w l i n _ ?] He did wonder where Groose went, after all. Right? [ _ But then again I don’t spend much time talking in the city _ .] At least that part was true, There was just… no time. And beside a few little favors here and there Link had little to do with them, everything just felt… distant. 

_ [C a w l i n is basically living in your room.] _ It wasn’t a lie, he just… carefully avoided to mention why he did so. Link still didn’t know exactly how he got convinced to be part of that romantic farce but he wanted nothing more to do with it  _ [During the night he crawls on your bed and all.] _

“I… don’t know if I feel happy about it or creeped out.” Link shrugged at Groose’s words, considering how the little man always did things in his own interest it wasn’t surprising he took over the largest room of the academy “But I guess it’s good to know I have a friend, right? Even if I never expected Cawlin to… wait, how do you know he sleeps there?”

_ [S t r i c h told me. I was visiting during the night as usual and I noticed he was always alone, lately.]  _

For a moment Groose’s reply was nothing more than a speechless blink and silence.

“Wait, why do you even visit Strich at night?”

_ [Simple, because we- _ ] He stopped dead on his tracks, his hands still in the middle of the movements needed to say ‘are’. Stupid tired brain, the other man asked to keep it a secret because he didn’t want to be bullied in the first place. Not that he owed him any favor after the loftwing incident but… Link clicked his tongue before realizing Groose was staring. Oh, well, it was better than facing the whole ‘did anyone miss me’ topic.  _ [Okay, listen, I don’t mind if you bully me but if you do anything to him I’m going to get mad because I promised I wouldn’t tell anyone…] _

“Link, are you two-”

_ [I’m his current bug smuggler.] _

“His what?”

_ [I have the means to collect bugs, he wants them so he buys them from me for decent money. And while I know it’s a waste of time: I always need potions, it’s literally the main reason I visit Skyloft, so the extra cash is welcome.] _ He wasn’t even looking at Groose right now, he was supposed to do the right thing whenever he could and Link could feel Fi’s disappointment in breaking a ‘verbal contract.  _ [Do not make fun of him.] _

“I’m just… that’s it?” Link frowned, turning to face the redhead “Pipsqueak, Granny gave me soup with bugs inside, for proteins she says, can’t really comment anymore on what people do with them.” Fair, Link chewed on his fair share of wild stuff as well, at least Fi could inform him if something was edible or not “But that’s it? From your tone it sounded super serious, like you two, you know… did some illegal stuff and all.”

The knight shook his head, he had… personal rules and value. While he occasionally checked inside other people’s vases to see if anything had been forgotten there he also never did anything worse. Not on Skyloft, at least.

_ [It’s just me, my collection of bugs and his rupee.] _

“Ah…”

This time Link replied with one of his rare vocalization, imitating Groose’s ‘ah’ and shrugging. It was a bad idea to visit, after all, this kind of chats didn’t help and he was only messing things up not just for himself but also for others. 

_ [You know what? Time to go.] _

“I won’t tell him I know if you tell me what’s eating you.”

He froze, mid squat and with both arms still in front of himself, ready to push the body up. What?

“Listen, it’s not like I care but you’re my only chance to see Zelda again-” Link glared in his direction “but you’ve been looking like your bird died since you arrived here. And that doesn’t bode well for your quest. You keep staring at nothing, you look more and more stressed every time you visit and, honestly? You smell so badly it’s been a test of will to stay here, sitting nearby.”

While Link wanted to tell him to shut up, he knew it was true: he was still wearing the same clothes he had when Zelda fell to the surface and the only time they had been washed was when Impa and Groose did it. With a sigh he fell back to his place, once more looking in front of him and not including the fellow teen in his field of view.

_ [Been in a d e s e r t.] _

“And what is that?”

_ [Sand. Sand everywhere. It’s hot, it’s lifeless and the sand gets everywhere, making wearing the armor really unpleasant at times. It’s just that: Heat and death.] _

He heard the other shift on his spot, probably trying to picture such a place in his mind.

“And it’s this place that’s making you… like this?”

Link shook his head, pouting, hugging his legs and trying to decide what to do. On one side, Groose was Groose, he knew perfectly that any kindness the man shown right now came from their common goal to bring back Zelda, on the other hand if he decided to come in the first place it was probably because he  _ was _ reaching his limit.

After what felt like an eternity, he finally raised his hands once more.

_ [No. I feel like this because I saw what it used to look like, long long ago.] _

_ \- - - _

Since Zelda had disappeared, Link pushed down anything he felt: Fi told him where to go, he proceeded. But once his hands started moving, his words started flowing as well: He wasn’t really seeing Groose in front of him anymore -and he was grateful that the other only interrupted when it was really necessary for him to ask for explanations- he was just getting things out of his chest. 

How uncomfortable it was traveling there, how electric attacks were the absolute worst to deal with because all they needed to hit was the sword or any uncovered bit of his skin to send shocks down his whole body and paralyze him for whole seconds and how the timeshift stones messed up with his head more than he wanted.

By the end Link felt exhausted. And incredulous about how much he ended up opening up with his former bully of all people- but with their common goal he already proved himself somehow relatable during Link’s fever-.

“So… this is a boat.” the other finally said, finger tapping against one of the many small drawings Link did on the floor. He was no artist but that had to do “And this is a ship. And your problem is that you can’t fire that high, uh? I think… yeah, I think I can actually… you know what?” 

Groose was the one who got up first, this time, and without too many compliments he forced Link back on his feet as well. The usual, full of himself grin was back on his face, the habitual arrogance was was almost welcome since he was used to it.

“Go back to Skyloft, get me some good hair gel, get yourself cleaned and come back here. No complains, you don’t want Zelda to see you like this when she’ll finally be back, right? I need to talk about it with granny first but I think I have an idea to get your ship back on its feet.”

_ [It’s unnecessary to complete my mission.] _

“Your mission won’t complete itself if you collapse on the way. Now, tell Cawlin I'll eventually pass by and say hello and...” He literally flipped Link on the spot, forcing him to face the direction where the Bird’s statue was. A moment of silence and then a strong push “Go.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic for me is just a breath of air between chapters of my Zora fic and my concubine one... because Groose and Link's friendship is something I love and I totally ship them too.

Link didn’t know how much he needed a bath until he took off his clothes and threw them in the washing bin of the Academy: not only everything he was wearing was in pitiful conditions but his skin was covered in blisters, cuts and burns that apparently even his healing potions had been unable to treat. 

He let out a sigh of relief as the lukewarm water embraced his body, soothing part of the pain. For a long moment the knight couldn’t even move, as soon as he embraced relaxation all his muscles decided they didn’t want to cooperate anymore and Link stood there staring at the water coming from the bird shaped fountain and the mosaic on the walls. Goddess, it felt like forever from the last time he just allowed his body to catch a break.

And as much as he hated to admit it: Groose was right. He didn’t want to find Zelda while smelling like a mix of sweat and urine, with crusts on his skin and hair clumped together by the dirt. Link licked his chapped lips, leaning back to clean himself a little and feeling grateful for the constant change of water in the bathtub, if the color and smell of the liquid surrounding his body was of any indication he didn’t want to stay in it if it was stagnant.

By the time his skin was clean and his energies had been restored it was already night time, Link didn’t even notice the sun going down but deep down he was glad he had an excuse for himself not to leave immediately. And tonight Pipit didn’t even stop to ask him to help during the night patrol, nor he had other duties waiting for him, it felt… nice.

A change of tunic had been delivered by the professor Horwell, he barely made a comment on how everyone noticed the state of Link’s clothes while giving him clean ones, and a good meal had been left for him. It wasn’t… too bad allowing others to pamper him a little, even if he suspected most of the attentions came from the fact he looked like trash.

Just one thing before going to bed… 

“...”

Link silently opened the room to Groose’s room, careful not to wake up the depressed teen who took possession of the redhead’s bed. While the man on the surface only requested hair gel, the knight knew the other was literally stranded and as he didn’t want to show up in front of Zelda looking like a beggar he knew it was probably the same for him…

This is why he got himself a large bag and-

“What are you trying to do?”

Link winced at Cawlin’s voice, of course he had to wake up as soon as he opened Groose’s wardrobe. He swallowed, shrugging in reply as he started taking some tunics and pants, stashing them in that little bag, the last thing he wanted was to start a fight with one of the redhead’s lackeys. Okay, his relationship with his former bully was leaning toward… friendship, maybe? But Cawlin knew nothing of that and Link didn’t feel like giving explanations of sort.

“I asked: what are you trying to do?”

Link had to retreat his hands quickly as the other slammed the wardrobe’s door close. It wasn’t like a small hit like that was going to hurt too much, his body was used to worse, but the reflexes were now there and he didn’t want to add even more bruises to his collection.

 _[What do you think I’m doing?]_ He finally signed, annoyed. 

“Looks like stealing to me!”

_[Oh, yes, because Groose’s clothes are exactly my size.]_

They did work well as pajama, that he experienced when he had to deal with his fever, but at the same time they were unpractical for anything else. How big had his parents to be in the first place for him to be so… tall? Good question, considering literally everyone in the Academy was an orphan with the exception of Pipit.

“You’re still taking stuff from- wait… you know where he is?”

The knight shrugged in response, trying to open the wardrobe once more. While he had no real problems with Cawlin or Strich, Link wasn’t too eager to stick around someone who kept blaming him for having his love life ruined- and thinking about it, it was a somehow recurring theme in his life. At least this time he wasn’t being directly accused of wanting to steal the girl.

There was no time to do much as the other placed himself between him and the wardrobe. Link sighed, perhaps he could try again in the morning or just spend some of his money in the market to get new stuff instead, it wasn’t like he was short on cash anymore.

“You know where he is!” Cawlin’s accusatory finger was right under his nose, now, and Link rolled his eyes before nodding. He did, in fact, know where Groose was.

What Link was expecting were insults, accusations, more of the vitriolic mix he had been used to during his life around them… he didn’t expect the redhead’s friends to wake up basically everyone in the building in the next ten minutes so everyone could help them prepare a proper pack for Groose.

\- - -

At a certain point Link had to run away, his Loftwing couldn’t carry heavy weight and what was initially just a bag of stuff for Groose turned into three filled with clothes, accessories and food supplies. He somehow managed to cut explanations short saying the other teen was busy helping Zelda, which wasn’t a complete lie, but that didn't stop people from covering him with gifts for the stranded man.

He was going to be selfish and keep the potions for himself, after all he was the one in the first line, but at the same time he was glad to see people did, in fact, care about the other boy. When Groose asked if anyone missed him just a day before he didn’t know what to answer, now him and his bird were carrying the answer on his shoulders.

“There you are, Pipsqueak!”

Link waved his hand in greeting, it was still weird to look at Groose and see him with his hair down but hopefully one of the many containers of gel was going to fix the problem. Before he could properly say hello, thought -that required him to place everything down first- the other reached for his hair bangs, wrapped his fingers around them and leant down to sniff Link’s hair.

The feeling he got from that apparently casual act? Uh… weird. Just… weird and he didn’t feel like thinking about it, it had to be no more than a normal reaction to something so unusual, people don’t touch each other too much on Skyloft anyway.

“Finally! You no longer smell like a trash can, now this is more appropriate for the one who is supposed to save Zelda. And I see you brought… stuff?”

Link shook his head, shoving two of the bags between Groose’s arms before getting to signing.

_[From your admirers.]_

“Wait… those are for me?”

He wanted to make a comment about how stupid the smile on his face was or how Link was equally surprised by the amount of love and care that went in Groose’s care package but in the end he simply beelined toward the temple. He was going to drop everything, force himself to forget about the Sea of Sand and just push forward: Fi had been insistent in reminding him he needed to get the last flame and he had a growing sense of guilt over taking so much time for himself.

It was… weird, he didn’t notice until he took time for himself but even when he attempted to think about other things the need to rush forward and find Zelda was always there. In part it made sense, she was his best friend and his only family as well, on the other hand…

He couldn’t finish the thought as Groose’s hand slammed against his back, almost sending him flying. What… how comes his brain didn’t register the danger? If it was from an enemy such a blow could have been fatal, what if it was a moblin with a spear?

“By the way, Granny helped me out but as I said: I have a solution for your ship problem!” Link somehow doubted that “Look!”

The knight turned only to find the other hold up not only his two bags but also a sailcloth. What… where did he even get one? Only knights were gifted such a thing and last time he checked he was the one who received the one Zelda made this year.

“I know, you got the good smelling one but Granny gave me hers! I just need to follow you to the statue when you do that weird ascending thing and jump on the currents with you and voilà, I can reach the desert with you!”

Panic immediately settled in at that. Oh, no, there was no way in hell he was taking Groose to that place, it was dangerous, scary and there were too many monsters for comfort. The Sealed grounds were somehow safe, even the closest bokoblins weren’t a real issue and as long as the imprisoned was underground everyone was safe… but the desert? He didn’t notice before taking his bath but he had countless little scars that resembled tree branches on his skin, present of all the electric attacks he had to deal with.

 _[Dangerous.]_ was all he managed to spell.

“I know but listen: I thought about your problem and with the help of Granny we prepared a little project. A mini-groosenator of sort.”

Link rolled his eyes before tossing the last bag in front of the temple’s entrance. Of course everything the redhead built had to bear his name, what was his problem anyway?

“You said there’s a dock in front sooo… if we build a giant bow on it and shoot from that spot we will be able to hit your stone and activate it… without being trapped on the top of the ship! When I explained my plan Granny said something like ‘back in my days we called it Ballista’. I call it Mini groosenator and if we find enough material that would be doable!”

_[There is literally no wood in the desert…]_

“Well, it only means I will have to improvise, right? Look, Pip, do you see how much I scavenged around for the Groosenator? Finding enough things for a mini one won’t be a big problem, I promise you.”

_[You have no idea what you’re talking about.]_

“True, like I had no idea what to expect when I jumped down following you. But you know what? I don’t regret doing so. Come on, let’s eat something together, I can smell Henya’s pumpkin soup even if it’s still sealed in here… Aw man, I never thought I’d end up excited about pumpkins of all things.”

And, before he could protest, Link was being pushed inside.

\- - -

Turns out Groose and Granny worked hard on their project: it wasn’t clear where the paper and the ink were from, the old lady loved to keep her secrets for herself, but a whole series of drawings had been prepared and while they all ate together Link had to admit it was… surprising how different the other man was.

Certainly, it wasn’t like his attitude drastically improved but he sounded genuinely invested in his work, and it wasn’t just to show off. The Old Lady listened to him, encouraged him and… it somehow helped? Link didn’t know exactly what to make of this change but Fi was somehow silent and Granny seemed okay with them both taking a moment off their duty so…

No, it was nice to know both wanted to help with something that bothered him but-

_[I don’t think I have time for this.]_

Granny didn’t get a word in before Groose’s hand slammed against Link’s back once more. Goddess above, his poor spine was suffering- being the other man’s target had always been a pain but now that they were on the same page… those weird acts of friendship were equally bad. Or it was just his body being overly taxed and not enjoying any unnecessary hit.

“Don’t be ridiculous, your robot-friends need help, right? And I want you to focus on saving our lady friend completely so let’s fix this, first! I admit I’m also curious to see this sea of yours. I’ve seen plenty of water since I arrived here, sometimes it even fell from the sky-”

Rain, that was how Fi called it when it surprised Link on the Isle of songs. Water just appearing midair and pouring all over the place, he never expected to see anything like that in his life… but then again the past few weeks had been a constant surprise.

He was silent for the rest of their meal, vaguely wondering why Granny also didn’t push him further or anything, and by the end of it Groose changed his clothes and was ready to follow. No gel, yet, he had been warned about the temperature and how they were both going to sweat like crazy so… no need for it, right?

“So, how does this work?”

Link hummed in front of the statue: he could move up with no problem whatsoever but Groose’s weight already proved to be too much when they descended together. Was the magical wind going to carry the other man as well? Or was Link just going to leave him behind no matter what?

A little voice in his head suggested this was the perfect opportunity to summon Scrapper to do the heavy lifting but at the same time… did he truly want to let the other know about something that could probably transport him around as much as he wanted? Of course, without Fi there were little to no chances of anyone getting its help but…

 _[I’m not sure the wind can lift you as well_ -]

“Is one of those hero things? Man, you get so many privileges…”

Right. He still didn’t know without trying. The knight hummed once again before frowning. They didn’t know if the wind could carry Groose, true, but Link was positive he could at least carry the man during the ascending part if they tried hard enough.

 _[This is going to be awkward.]_ He admitted stepping closer and showing him how to properly hold the sailcloth _[Don’t let this go, no matter what. I’m going to try something really stupid.]_

“Why am I not surprised? Wait, what are you doing?"

Good question, Link told himself as he wrapped his arms around the other’s waist and forced Groose to lean against him as he also adjusted his cloth. He just needed to anchor his arms under the redhead’s body and wrap his legs around him as well during the jump.

“Man, I’m so glad I told you to take a bath…”

The knight hissed, touched the Statue with his elbow to activate it and before Groose could say anything else stupid they were both catapulted in the sky.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is so self indulgent I just... no shame, okay?

While only Link could activate the statue, both sailcloths could capture the wind to rise their owners… and it would have been good to know before almost breaking his nose as his body was smashed against Groose’s when they were both pulled up. Staying under him had been, indeed, a poor choice in the end.

Both men tumbled against each other as they were lifted up, hands holding around the cloth for dear life and not daring to let go even if being so tangled with each other certainly increased the risks they were exposing themselves. It was only when they finally passed the thick layer of clouds that they let go of each other, finally releasing one side of their sailcloths and parting ways while calling for their birds.

It was a relief when they were finally on the back of their quick steeds, feeling safe with the fingers between their loftwings’s feathers. If Link’s reaction was just a sigh of relief, thought, Groose’s one was way louder. 

The redhead man let out a loud cheer, raising both hands and cherishing the moment. Right, he probably missed flying a lot, he had been stuck on the surface for weeks, it was… a bit endearing. Probably, not like Link had the time to pay much attention to it anyway.

“Oh, man, I feel reborn!”

Link blinked, surprised by the fact he could actually hear the other’s words despite the wind blowing against them and how fast they were moving. Yes, he couldn’t hear him now, as he talked to his steed petting her head, but at the same time… that was impressive.

They kept flying, the knight leading the way with his red bird and Groose following close behind, when Link realized this was almost an unique chance for the other to go home, at least for a moment.

_[Do you want to pass by Skyloft before we proceed for the desert?]_

The other turned to look at the flying city with a long, longing expression. Then he simply shook his head.

_[I will return home once Zelda is safe. Until then, I don’t need distractions.]_

Link frowned, shooting an inquisitive glare in his direction.

_[Even this is work. Again: you’re the one supposed to save her, by helping you I’m helping her.]_

That was a fair point. It was almost admirable how despite being told he wasn’t going to be Zelda’s Champion -And Link still had conflicting feelings about it, he was sure if it wasn’t for Zelda he was fighting for he would have been way more reticent to embrace this path- he still was trying his best, in his own ways.

The knight nodded in his direction and leant forward, pushing his bird further, toward the mantle of clouds where a golden beacon of light was showing them the way. 

Time to dive.

\- - -

“Oh, man, you weren’t kidding when you said this place is hot.”

Coordinating the landing had been difficult, Fi could only guide Link down and he never realized how difficult it’d be speaking to another person while both his hands were busy with the sailcloth. The result? The knight ended up forced to point at directions by flailing his legs in the most dramatic way. 

He did hear Groose laugh at the ungraceful show, even if the man followed his directions when needed, but decided to be the better person and pretending that didn’t bother him at all. After so many years spent being bullied that was nothing coming from the man. He didn’t even know, to be honest, why that bothered him this time. Link still kept his composure, pretending he didn’t even notice the other’s amusement, and kept for himself once they hit the ground. 

At least until the other started panting and sweating. Ah! Who was looking silly now? Link offered a small smirk in Groose’s direction before raising his hands.

_[Told you.]_

“I know but… man.”

In a moment of pity Link took off his hat, offering it to the other man. Fi mentioned before keeping the head covered protected from the Sun’s direct exposure and helped in such a climate. 

_‘Your friend’s clothes are also impractical, master. Wearing dark clothes and leaving uncovered skin is hardly considered appropriate for such a place, white equipment and full coverage of the body to slow down the rate at which sweat-’_

Well, thanks Fi. He sighed loudly, interrupting her. They could have used that kind of information before traveling there. Then again, it made sense: Link’s tunic wasn’t a dark shade of green and between all layers he had full coverage. 

He turned around to look at his companion, just to see him hold the hat between his hands with a conflicted look painted on his face. What? Was that problematic about his poor hat? It was even clean considering he had been assigned new, clean clothes before leaving the island once more.

Link was about to him to give it back when Groose finally shared with him what actually bothered him.

“While I hate to admit it: It’s a good thing I didn’t pass as a knight this year. This green? On me? It’d never match my hair.”

That was it? Link huffed, shaking his head and stepping forward, they were already wasting enough time for the knight’s silly desire, there was no need to add unnecessary commentaries about fashion. They had to walk a bit, the only time the knight turned to check if he was being followed was to actually check if the other put on his hat -he did- and ignored all gasps or weird sounds of surprise. 

And, finally… the pier. With a clap of his hands he got the other’s attention, pointing at Skipper that was still standing by the boat. 

“Woah, isn’t that, you know, like the broken thing Gondo keeps around?”

_[Actually, I helped repairing that one.]_

Which, actually, made him wonder if there was a chance to repair them with enough ancient flowers. Then again, Scrapper had been kept inside buildings and safe for most of its life, unlike the rest of them. _Then again_ , the broken ancient robots found inside Skipper’s Retreat were also sheltered by the weather… uh, why was he feeling so compelled to help them? Link sighed, cutting off Groose as he tried to speak.

_[Listen, I just realized, can you translate for me? No one here speaks sign language and that would make things faster for both of us.]_

Golden eyes studied him for a long instant, almost like Groose expected Link to admit it was just a weird joke. When nothing came he frowned, raised his head up once more and started walking first toward the captain after grumbling a ‘you gotta be kidding me’.

There was little consideration for the water around the small pier, at least for now. After all it wasn’t the first time he saw ‘puddles’ that size… it was going to be interesting to see his reaction seeing the actual sea further from there. His line of thoughts was suddenly interrupted by Groose’s loud voice, he was now yelling in Skipper’s direction while approaching… despite being only few steps away.

“Hey, you’re Link’s little robotic friend, right?”

Goddess give him the strength.

\- - -

Introductions went better than he expected and the ancient machine agreed to carry both of them to his friends’s location. And sitting on the deck, ready to shoot any monster that would appear in range, Link was now at least relaxed enough to… uh… enjoy Groose’s reactions to the actual bottom of the sea. He wasn’t one to hold back his emotions, was he? The gasps and gulps were loud, the man kept running from one side of the boat to the other to stare at the corals -that’s how Fi called them.-, the fishes and gaze at the colorful creatures moving around them. Nothing like the few bodies of water near the Sealed temple of the sad, lifeless one on Skyloft, uh?

“Look at that thing, it has so many legs! So pretty!”

When he reached forward to touch it the robot grabbed his tunic, pulling him back.

“I wouldn’t touch it, _Bzzzt_ , that’s a blue ringed squid, from what I know its touch is poisonous for humans.”

“Uh…”

That pretty thing? Really? Link momentarily tuned out the chatter of the other two to let Fi know that he wanted to be informed if anything that seemed otherwise inoffensive could be dangerous for Groose. It wasn’t like they were close friends but.. he was still an ally, maybe friend, going out of the way to assist him. 

‘As you wish, master’

He nodded to the horizon, silently thanking his companion, before turning just in time to see the other reach with his hand for the fresh water under them. Oh… he knew exactly what was happening there, yet he didn’t move a single finger, waiting almost with anticipation as the other brought his hands back to his lips.

The coughs and sputters that followed were hilarious and he couldn’t help but grin like an idiot and suffocating a laugh, all while watching him. Ooops? Perhaps he should have warned Groose before they reached the sea.

“You-” Link snorted when Groose pointed a finger in his direction, his composure starting to crack. If the knight didn’t knew he probably had the same, disgusted expression when he tried to drink from the same source, he’d be even worse at containing himself while listening to the other’s sputters “You knew how this tasted like, didn’t you?”

Link’s lips parted as he pretended to be shocked by the accusation, a hand pressed open against his chest, but the grin still curving his lips didn’t make him look too convincing. But how was he supposed to be serious when the other acted like that?

_[I had no idea-]_

“Oh yes you did. You are so soooo lucky I value Zelda’s safety more than my own pride or else…” 

Somehow both knew it was an empty threat, unlike the past ones, no matter if Groose was raising his fist or if Link was pretending to be upset. Any resemblance of a fight was anyway interrupted when the most unique school of fishes decided to break through the surface and ‘fly’. Gliding was a more fitting word, perhaps, but both men’s jaw dropped when the blue fishes spread their blue fins and proceeded to slowly descend using the wind to their own advantage.

What the… he didn’t see that last time he sailed with Skipper! 

“Bird-fishes!” Was Groose’s comment as both followed the animals’s movements with their eyes as they could “Why don’t we have those in Skyloft?”

While they didn’t seem able to fly for long, even Link was questioning it. Were they both water and airborn or just gliders? Who knew? Sadly the fishes crumbled to dust as soon as they left the influence of the timeshift stone.

As soon as the redhead realized that he almost deflated, a disappointed ‘oh’ leaving his lips. 

Yup, it was as depressing as Link anticipated him, life would just end as soon as they left the protective bubble and… wait, why weren’t the two of them influenced by those? Was it because they were humans? Maybe it had something to do with those who left them behind? Too many questions for his tastes, he didn’t feel like questioning things too much, not now.

And not especially when the other probably needed some words of encouragem-

“Oh, well, it was still awesome. Man, we need to take Zelda to see this once you bring her back.” Oh… well at least he didn’t sound too bothered? “Yeah, you will be allowed to come to our future date but it’s only because we need your hero powers to activate the statue. ” Link slowly raised an eyebrow but Groose didn’t seem to mind “Yes, I know, I’m very generous but after all you’re helping, right?”

Link rolled his eyes, not bothering to hide his amusement, as long as he could tell there was no real animosity in the other man’s tone all was good… right?

_[It’s dangerous here, I’m already not too sure about bringing you in this place, I’d rather not take her-]_

“Hey! That’s Zelda you’re talking about, she may be in danger right now because there’s some mumbo jumbo prophecy or something like that but once this is over she’ll be the one keeping us safe and WOAH-” distraction was provided when another sea creature captured his attention “Look, Pipsqueak! That one is flat!”

_‘That’s called Manta Ray, master’_

He acknowledged Fi’s informative comment, then proceeded to bring his attention back to the larger man. Groose was back looking at the creatures below them, apparently immune to the weird sense of loss and sadness that hit Link instead. Perhaps it was because the redhead didn’t have Link’s same emotional baggage by knowing most of the robots and monsters that passed away…

Perhaps the difference was that while one of them was looking at what had been lost, the other only seemed to see what had been brought back even if just for a moment. 

Link crossed his arms, leaning against the cannon.

That was so much better than traveling alone…

\- - -

He took everything back, traveling with Groose was horrible.

Mostly because he felt restless, Link could still feel his body insist he needed to reach for Zelda instead. When he took the bath it was just a suggestion in the back of his head, when he was traveling he felt his fingers twitch occasionally but managed to repress it… now that he spent hours under the sun just waiting as the other did whatever he wanted the physical need to turn, rush to the location where he was supposed to find the last flame was almost overwhelming.

Was that even natural? He knew part of him wanted to save Zelda because she was his best friend, he knew part of it was also due to his need to protect his charge but… it was unpleasant being there, waiting for Groose to do whatever he was planning to.

Link was merely stepping back and forth on the deck of the large ship, nervously chewing his nails to the point his fingers started to bleed, as the other scavenged in search of materials to build his weird bow invention. 

They discussed with Skipper how in the end the redhead needed the whole deck to build and aim freely so the robot was actually waiting not too close to the ship, and Link had no other choice but to try to keep himself busy. Every single Rupee had been cleaned, every arrow collected, all that was left was sand and dirt…. oh if only he had a broom or something to keep himself busy.

_‘Master, perhaps you should-’_

_[Fi, we can’t just leave like this-]_

_‘But-’_

_[If we leave him behind and something happens to him I-]_ his hands twitched as he took a deep breath, it took him a moment to find the right words _[I know we aren’t exactly best friends but my duties aren’t limited to Zelda alone: I’m a knight, he’s a civilian, it’s already wrong for me to expose him like this.]_

He stood there, staring at his companion’s expressionless face for a long moment, Fi’s only reply for a long while was only a slight tilt of her head as she attempted to process his words.

_‘I am confused master, then why did you bring him here?’_

_[I wish I knew._ ] Link rubbed the bridge of his nose, sighing heavily and almost tripping on one of the broken piece of rope [ _I just don’t know, it just felt right? I guess I want to do something for myself and see this ship sail once more?_ ]

That was the easier explanation, both for him and the spirit, right? The dutiful knight just wanted to help ‘more’, wasn’t that supposed to make the goddess even prouder of her Chosen one? Link spinned on his heels, ready to sign more, just to freeze as soon as he noticed Groose standing by an open door, a rope tossed over his shoulders and a vaguely worried expression on his face. Great, he really needed to have that man seeing him talking to ‘himself’ like that, how long had he been there?

Before he could say anything the other shook his head, crossed his arms and raised his voice in Link’s direction.

“Come on, you lazy bum, I need your help to carry stuff from inside. I found what I need so you better at least give me a hand with this. Chop chop, Pipsqueak!”

Without giving Link time to reply, Groose was walking inside once more. So he just… didn’t raise any question, uh? He was actually glad the other tended to avoid awkward conversations.

_‘Master, we-’_

_[You heard him, Fi…]_

And, while he wasn’t really eager to break his back once more, he followed the other inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah so I headcanon strongly people talk to each other by signing while flying because yelling like idiots while you're dealing with strong wind in the face and all with the distances they seem to keep seems... a bit too forced.


End file.
